The increase in rate of species loss in the world is due to:(A) Less…

The correct answer is Option (2) → (B), (D) and (E) only

(A) Less use of natural resources — False. Species are lost because humans use too much of nature, not too little. Using less would slow the loss.

(B) Introduction of alien species — True. This is alien species invasion, one of the Evil Quartet. Carrot grass (Parthenium), Lantana and water hyacinth (Eichhornia) threaten native species in India.

(C) Species confined to a particular area — False. A species found only in one area is an endemic species. Endemism is a feature of a region, not a cause of species loss; high endemism even marks a biodiversity hotspot.

(D) Removal of one species from co-existed species — True. This is co-extinction. When a species dies out, the plants and animals tied to it in an obligatory way also die out, like the parasites of a host fish.

(E) Destruction of large landscape into small area — True. This is habitat loss and fragmentation, the most important cause. Mammals and birds that need large territories are badly affected when a habitat is broken into small pieces.

NCERT Extract:
Loss of Biodiversity – “… (i) Habitat loss and fragmentation: This is the most important cause driving animals and plants to extinction. … When large habitats are broken up into small fragments due to various human activities, mammals and birds requiring large territories and certain animals with migratory habits are badly affected, leading to population declines.
(ii) Over-exploitation: Humans have always depended on nature for food and shelter, but when ‘need’ turns to ‘greed’, it leads to over-exploitation of natural resources. Many species extinctions in the last 500 years (Steller’s sea cow, passenger pigeon) were due to overexploitation by humans.
(iii) Alien species invasions: When alien species are introduced unintentionally or deliberately for whatever purpose, some of them turn invasive, and cause decline or extinction of indigenous species. The Nile perch introduced into Lake Victoria in east Africa led eventually to the extinction of an ecologically unique assemblage of more than 200 species of cichlid fish in the lake.
(iv) Co-extinctions: When a species becomes extinct, the plant and animal species associated with it in an obligatory way also become extinct. When a host fish species becomes extinct, its unique assemblage of parasites also meets the same fate. Another example is the case of a coevolved plant-pollinator mutualism where extinction of one invariably leads to the extinction of the other.”